Kyoto Matcha

Kyoto Prefecture extends well beyond the city of Uji, and most of the tencha sold under "Uji" labels is actually grown in three smaller towns farther south.

Tea has been cultivated in Kyoto since at least the Kamakura period (1185-1333), and the prefecture today is a patchwork of growing areas with overlapping reputations. Within Kyoto, the three towns of Wazuka, Minami Yamashiro, and Ujitawara sit in the Yamashiro Basin south of Uji City and produce the majority of the prefecture's tea. Wazuka alone accounts for roughly half of Kyoto's raw tea and just over half of its tencha. The leaves are typically transported north to Uji for finishing and sold under the "Uji Matcha" label.

That trademark works on processing location, not growing location. "Uji Matcha" is legally defined as tea grown in Kyoto, Mie, Nara, or Shiga and processed in Kyoto Prefecture. A powder marketed as Uji could have leaves from anywhere in that four-prefecture area. Powders labeled simply "Kyoto" are usually from these surrounding towns rather than from Uji City itself.

The flavor signature varies depending on which town. Wazuka leans fragrant and aromatic, with slightly more daytime sun than the foggier Uji fields. Rocky's Matcha sells one Kyoto-tagged blend in our database (Dreamin' Man Ceremonial Blend), with leaves from one of the prefecture's broader Yamashiro Basin fields rather than Uji proper.